NCJ Number
197713
Date Published
July 2002
Length
86 pages
Annotation
This report presents information from the 2000 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse (NHSDA) on the number and percentage of the population in the United States and in each State who needed but did not receive treatment for illicit drug use problems, referred to as the “treatment gap.”
Abstract
The 2000 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse (NHSDA) included a series of questions to assess dependence on and abuse of substances and questions related to whether respondents had received treatment for a problem related to substance use. The survey was conducted from January through December 2000. The report provides estimates of the prevalence and patterns of the need for and receipt of treatment, specifically for problems associated with illicit drug use. It also provides estimates of the “treatment gap,” defined as individuals who needed treatment in the past year but did not receive the treatment. The report begins by presenting estimates of the treatment gap at the national level, including estimates of the need for and receipt of treatment for an illicit drug problem by demographic characteristics including age, gender, race/ethnicity, geographic area, education, and employment. The report continues with State treatment gap estimates. These estimates were based on a model having two components: a national model using data from the 2000 NHSDA and information collected from the NHSDA respondents in each State. Results were validated by comparing estimates produced by the model with estimates based entirely on the sample data. National results indicated that 1.74 percent of persons aged 12 or older needed treatment but did not receive it in the past year. State-level results included: (1) of the 10 states with the highest percentage treatment gaps, 6 were Western States and 3 were Northeastern States with Arizona having the highest percentage; (2) the 12 to 25 age group constituted the majority of the treatment gap; (3) in the lowest fifth, five States were Southern States and four were Midwestern with Iowa having the lowest treatment gap; (4) States with larger populations had the largest estimated number of persons in the treatment gap with California having the largest number; and (5) with the range in State population sizes larger than the range in the estimated State treatment gap percentages, the population size had a dominant impact on the treatment gap counts. The State-level estimates of the drug abuse treatment gap provide an important tool for treatment planners and policymakers on the Federal, State, and local levels. Tables